CHAPTER 23

Jareth entered the sitting room and said disgruntled, "What do you want Amberlin? Our relationship was completely through five years ago. You said you hated the goblins and never wanted to be around them again. Why did you come back?" He smug and was being blase about it like he held no interest in her.

Amberlin cooed, "Oh Jareth, we were so good together. Don't you remember? You couldn't get enough of me in your bed."

Jareth said, "That is history now. I have the woman of my dreams and desires."

Amberlin said, "You aren't married yet you can still change your mind?"

Jareth huffed again and said, "Amberlin, I was married yesterday and you have disturbed my morning with my queen."

Amberlin said, suggestively, "She cannot keep up with your sexual appetite. I can be your mistress when she is not looking?" She gave him a devious look.

Jareth said sneering at her, "My beautiful wife is more woman than you ever were. Now leave my sight and kingdom, for I grow weary of your plots." Jareth stood up and walked to the door. Amberlin stood up and reached out to his shoulder and pricked him with a barb on the inside of her ring.

Jareth jerked around looking at her and said, "What was that! What did you do to me!" He got dizzy and fell to his knees as he crumpled to the floor. He said, "You poisoned me with your ring! You bitch!"

That's when Galvin and Sarah charged into the room. Sarah looked at Jareth and put hand on him. He said, "Get your hands off me! It was a mistake to marry you!"

Amberlin cooed, "What about me. You love me, don't you Jareth?"

Jareth spit, "I hate you too! Get away from my castle and kingdom!" Amberlin was surprised because her potion didn't work but made him hate everyone. Sarah wished Amberlin to be frozen and hands bound.

Sarah said, "Galvin go get the healer to find out what she stuck him with and what is in her ring?" Galvin ran off to get him.

When Galvin returned with the healer, Jareth was on his knees throwing up. The healer did a diagnostic spell and said, "The love potion was mixed with a hate aphrodisiac. It's causing a conflicting reaction. Whoever made this wasn't very astute in knowledge. It is poisoning him." Sarah glared at Amberlin.

The healer mixed herbs into a potion and was administering it to the king to counteract the potion and the aphrodisiac. The healer said, "The king should be alright in about 20 mins but will not be up to full strength until tomorrow." Jareth drank the potion and still sat on the floor

Sarah asked, "Jareth, what do you want done with her for now."

Jareth said, "Put her in the dungeon and Galvin, notify her father, Lord Herrold, as to what she has done. Contact the High Council."

Amberlin started to panic. She had never been treated this way before in her life and she was angry. Her entire focus was trying to get Jareth back to secure herself being his queen or consort.

The guards entered the room and Sarah told them to take her to the dungeon after she wished Amberlin to be just unable to perform magic. They took her away. Amberlin screamed at the door as she was struggling with the guards at Sarah, "I hate you! You ruined everything!"

Sarah said condescendingly, "You are a little fool to think that. You ruined everything and damn near destroyed, Jareth, MY husband, who loves me with your poison! Get her out of here!" They left as Amberlin went crazy screaming all the way to the dungeon.

Sarah knelt down on the floor and asked Jareth, "How are you feeling, Jareth?" He looked up at her and then hung his head.

He said, "I was so consumed with hate for everyone and everything. I'm so sorry for saying that to you."

Sarah reached out and lifted his head and said softly, "Jareth, what kind of wife would I be to know you would never say that to me unless something was terribly wrong. I know I have your heart because you have mine. Let's go to bed so you can get your rest. Let me help you." He nodded. She got Jareth on his feet and she helped him get to his bedroom.

They walked into the door and up to the bedroom. He vanished his clothes into a pair of black silk pajama pants. Sarah laid down the kitten's bag at the end of the bed and pulled back the bedding and tucked Jareth in. She laid down on top of the covers and he held her to his chest as she wrapped her arm around him and rested her head on his shoulder. The kitten's crawled up on Jareth's chest making them both smile as they cuddled up to their mother's chin.

When Lord Herrold arrived at The Castle Beyond The Goblin City, he was incensed about what his daughter had done. He knew her foolishness could cause her to be put to death. The council will hold court in three days and she will sit in Jareth's dungeon until then with her magic disabled. He walked up to the cell door and said angrily at his daughter, "What has got into you! How could you blatantly throw yourself at a recently married king. Then after he refuses you, you poison him with a badly made potion of hate! Have you lost your mind!"

She screamed, "Get me out of here father! He is mine! You hear me! I will be a better mate than that dark haired piece of trash!" She instantly calmed down and said slyly, "I was doing it for us to raise our status by me being his consort. Then we would be able to be with the elite at the parties and I would receive luxurious gifts from the High King to increase our wealth. See, I did it for you father." He couldn't believe she thought that would ever work. It was like she had lost herself in a complete delusion.

He said, "Not like this, you could be put to death for this Amberlin. You poisoned a king."

She said, pouting, "I made the potion like the book said. I didn't know it would not work and do the opposite. I must have put in too many hawthorn leaves and rose thorns." He shook his head and left her there as she screamed for him to tell them to let her out. He went back home and waited for the court date in two more days.

—--day 62

The day after next, Jareth felt much back to his full strength. He and Sarah were crowned together High King and High Queen of the Underground with all the pomp and circumstance with a quickly created coronation ball.

—--day 63

The next day the Goblin City threw a city wide party because their new Goblin Queen was publicly crowned. Everyone across the entire nine kingdoms knew who was the new High King and Queen, as well as the new Goblin Queen including all of the friends Sarah made so far in the Underground. There were three friends that were confused as to why they didn't hear from Sarah long before all these changes went through.

—--day 64

The day after the goblin queen coronation party was over and the streets were being cleaned up, Sarah went to Hoggle's house. Sarah went and knocked on his door standing there in her cloak and bag of kittens. She heard him yelling, "I tells ya ta let herself in Didymus. Why cantcha remember?" He yanked open the door and blinked looking at Sarah.

He says surly, "Whatcha want?"

Sarah said, "I want to explain everything that's happened for the last thirteen years and mostly the last few days."

Hoggle said indifferently, "Well I's donno what ye expect from me? It weren't me that didn' talk to me friends fer years and just sudden like, marry a rat and get crowned two times in two days."

Sarah said, "Please let me explain. The High King from before cut off my mirror."

Hoggle said, "Na, na, na. Ya had ta be back 'ere long 'nough ta get familiar with tha rat."

Sarah said, sighing, "As of today, it is my seventh day in the Goblin City and being in the castle. I have been in the Underground for 64 days now. I wasn't able to come to the Goblin City until now, six days ago."

Hoggle said, "Why not?"

Sarah said, "Please, Hoggle, let me come in and explain? It's freezing out here." He backed up and let her inside. She walked in and went straight to the fire to warm up.

Hoggle asked, "Does ya want tea?"

Sarah said, "Yes, that would be nice." She sat in one of the chairs in front of the fire. Hoggle was heating tea in his stove. Sarah's kittens cried out and she pulled them both out of the bag and cuddled them.

Sarah said softly, "It's ok babies."

Hoggle looked over at her and asked, "Whatcha got that?"

Sarah said, "Two nine weeks old cathwyllt kitten brothers. Their mother was killed by some animal in the night not far from my camp."

Hoggle said, "Them cats be rare."

Sarah said, "Yes, so I have been told." Hoggle came over with a tea tray, cookies and put it on a little rustic table between them. Hoggle poured them both a cup of tea.

Sarah said, "I grew up, finished school and learned self-defense training, archery, shooting and all seasons survival. I had a job teaching self defense fighting to adults. Then the Goblin King showed up in my apartment I lived in thirteen years later. He kidnapped me and locked me up in his dungeon. I escaped with the help of Gaia. I traveled from town to city camping in the winter for the last two months. I encountered Jareth a few times and we found out that his father shut off my mirror to get him to leave me alone and marry a fae. When his father found out that I was in the Underground he sent bounty hunters after me and those damn bounty hunters were snatching up every human they could get their hands on in four kingdoms to sell as they were searching for me. See, I couldn't come tell you I was here. First I was running from Jareth, then from bounty hunters. Jareth and I had talked things over and worked things out. He wanted me to come back to the castle because he and the Labyrinth said they both would be better able to protect me here. The day I came back in the afternoon I went out of the castle to the bakery and I was being followed by the High King's assassin. I captured him and called Jareth. The High King was charged with four counts of breaking fae law. He had his magic stripped and lost his full position as High King and royalty."

Hoggle said, "Whew! He done 'emself in." Sarah nodded.

Sarah said, "Jareth begged me to marry him right on the spot because he said he had to be married to step into his father's position. I had feelings for him already and I couldn't let anyone else take over here in this kingdom or there in that kingdom. I got married to him the next day. I had two princesses throw open my chamber door in the morning of the handfasting and tell me they were better choices. Jareth had a fit. They had their fathers come to collect them. The next day after, in the morning a Lady came and tried to convince him to marry her or be his consort. He refused her and she poisoned him with a badly made potion on her ring that poisoned him. Luckily the healer had the antidote. He had to rest the rest of the day. Then it was the High King and Queen coronation. The following Goblin Queen coronation and now today. I've been jumping like a frog on a hotplate. I just haven't had time or the ability to come see you with everything that has happened. Please forgive me?"

Hoggle sighed and said, "I sees whatcha be saying now. I be sorry fer being mad at ya."

Sarah said, "Nobody was as mad as Jareth was at never hearing from me. He finally understood once I told him I was terrified of wishing and he found my mirror was shut off by his father." Sarah visited a while longer and stayed to have dinner with Hoggle and Sir Didymus. Sarah found out Ludo had gone back to his people in the mountains and wouldn't be back to visit until summer. It was a nice visit and Sarah had planned ahead by bringing the kittens food with her.

Sarah got back to the castle with an armed guard sent by Jareth to escort her home in the dark after dinner to the castle. Jareth was waiting at the door of the castle to escort her up to their chambers. Sarah put the kittens in their litter box and got dressed for bed. Jareth had moved Sarah's armoire, vanity and dresser into his chambers along with the litter box. They all slept together and the kittens were starting to get used to their amorous behavior, but slept next to their mother on her side of the bed and snuggled when they fell asleep.

THE END?

*I plan on doing a sequel to this later.*